Vigo, The Experience

[crad80]

Hi Everyone,

As we head into the month of June, many of you will be either starting or completing your Camino walk. I just wanted to post this four minute video (in Spanish) of the city of Vigo. It's a short train ride from Santiago de Compostela, and it's a great place to visit. There are many festivals coming up and people are very friendly. So if you decide to visit us, please try the pulpo -- it's one the best in Galicia!

Buen Camino, and I hope to see you in Vigo in the near future!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Er5tiBoC ... e=youtu.be

 

[piogaw]

Hola crad80,

Muchas gracias for your suggestion. I will be in santiago for a month in june. I hope i can dropped by vigo for a visit in my spare time. As vigo is the biggeSt fishing seaport in europe, i am sure i will enjoyed pulpo a la gallega, fresh and just taken from the sea. I am a big fan or marisco y pescado dishes having been bought up on islands.

Hasta luego. Dios los bendiga.

 

[crad80]

Spanish
Buenos días Piogaw,

Claro que sí! Que tengas un buen día!

Nos vemos pronto, Crad80

English
Good day Piogaw,

Of course! Have a great day.

We see each other soon, Crad80

 

[turtles06]

Hello, we will be in Vigo for a day this fall (off a cruise ship) and looking forward to our visit. We visited Santiago last year and very much loved the experience. Is there any route of the Camino that passes through Vigo itself? I have not had any luck so far in my seach for one on line, and would love to know where we might go in Vigo to say we had been on the Camino there.

I'd also love any link to a map of Vigo that I could download, and any tips for spending one day in the city.

Muchas gracias!!

 

[robventures]

The Caminh?o Portugues coastal route goes through Vigo.

To be honest, Vigo is never going to be on any tourist's must-see list, and would have been disappointing had we actually had any expectations. For example, the (huge) working industrial port is right next to the old town, pushing the recreational and beach areas a long way out.

Vigo isn't even in Frommer's Spain 2012 at all, and an older Rough Guide says that it "fails to live up to that initial promise, and few visitors use it as anything more than an overnight stop."

The Cíes Islands were nice enough, though.

 

[miguel_gp]

I'd also love any link to a map of Vigo that I could download, and any tips for spending one day in the city.

Hi,

As Robventures rightly says, the Portugues Coastal Route passes through Vigo, I suspect it just traces the waterfront, which in the city itself I don't think is particularly picturesque. I would think that the attraction of the cruise ships stopping at Vigo is the day trip to Santiago. However, I understand also that the Cies Islands are very attractive if that is an optional trip.

I have only really visited the beach just to the south at Samil (nice enough), the hospital with an ill friend and a bar on the waterfront whilst meeting a friend, which was just opposite the waterside cement factory. From what I saw I don't think it has the attraction of Santiago or Pontevedra as a destination but maybe the Vigo tourism website can give further ideas for a day visit. It has a 10 must sees in Vigo.

In terms of a map, turgalicia have a pdf version here which you should be able to download to smart phone/ipad/laptop.

I hope your stop is enjoyable, whatever you decide to do.

 

[katehawk]

Vigo is great. It is not a pristine, more-perfect-than-life, picturesque destination. (Like many of the Camino villages.) It is a dynamic, working, living, breathing, industrialized port city. There is hideously ugly construction-- especially the big black shopping center built smack-dab in the middle of the downtown waterfront; there are beggars and indigents and unsavory characters hawking black market goods. All the things you might not want on your "vacation."

There is also incredible beauty. The bay, river, fjord, estuary (whatever you want to call it) is gorgeous. It is busy-- filled with life-- boats and ships of all sorts: flotillas of little kids learning to sail, fishing vessels, freighters, tugs, cruise ships, sleek ferries shuttling people back and forth across the bay. Though not in town, but not far away-- there are lovely beaches, both on the fjord and on the Atlantic. And then the seafood-- nothing like it! It alone is worth the trip. Parts of the city are lovely with parks and fountains... museums, churches, a university... all the things you would expect in a city, even an El Corte Ingles.

Vigo exudes life.

(Unfortunately, the above tourist video does not do it justice. It is overly romanticized-- has cut the guts (and heart) out of the place.)

 

[andy.d]

The Vigo Inn, above Vigo on the Pilgrims Way between Winchester and Canterbury, is also very good and has a fine welcome for pilgrims.

Andy

 

[crad80]

Hello Turtles06,

Greetings from Vigo!!! As for your question about the Camino passing through the City of Vigo. Yes, it does pass through Vigo and it's the coastal route. Please look at the following two links for more information:

http://www.turismodevigo.org/en/st-jame ... rough-vigo
http://camino.xacobeo.es/en/routes/port ... long-coast

As for a map of the City of Vigo, please look at the following link:

http://www.turgalicia.es/docs/mdaw/mdk4 ... 098263.pdf


If you cannot open the pdf file, look for it on the original website at: http://www.turgalicia.es/planos-de-ruas-das-cidades

I hope this helps. If you have any further questions about Vigo or the Camino Portuguese route, please feel free to contact me.

Hasta luego y Buen Camino!!!!

C-rad80

 

[carriedavey]

G'day! We completed our camino on May 21st and as our flight home to OZ was not until June 6th had a period of time to "fill" We visited the travel agency near the pilgrims office and through them arranged an itinerary that took in Fisterra, A Coruna, and Vigo. Coming into Vigo by rail on a grey and gloomy day filled us with trepidation, as the ride into the city is less than pretty. However, we had a wonderful stay in this city.
On Friday we took the ferry to Moana and caught a bus to Cangas for the friday open market, where we bought fresh baked bread and cheese as well as fruit and we had a lunch al-fresco at the waterfront. Back to Moana for a pleasant walk along the front before getting the ferry back to Vigo. We enjoyed dinner in the old quarter of Vigo.
Saturday afternoon we caught a bus and spent a great time at Samil beach among the locals.
Sunday, we had the whole day (10:00-18:15) at Cies Islands, NOT TO BE MISSED!
Vigo turned out to be a hidden gem for us and we are so glad we visited this city.

 

[crad80]

Yes, the Cies Islands are definitely NOT TO BE MISSED! Attached is a link to Information about the upcoming music festival on San Simón Island.

http://novas.sinsalaudio.es/

Hasta pronto y Buen Camino!!!

C-rad80

 

[robventures]

The Cíes Islands (or Island, really, as you only visit the one) are indeed very nice, but as this is a camino forum and the only route which passes close by is the Caminh?o Portugues coastal route, I should point out that to anyone who has actually been walking up the Portuguese coast, a visit is less "must not miss!!1!" and more "just like last week, only more touristy".

 

[wdbillingsley]

We flew into Vigo (using Delta skymiles) and had planned to walk the Camino starting in Valenca Portugal, across the river from Tui, Spain. Somehow we changed our plans, took the bus to Santiago and walked to Finisterra.

However we met friends in Santiago after returning from our walk and drove down to Valenca which was a very nice town. They have taken an old fortress overlooking the river and turned it into a shopping and restaurant area. Then onto Porto which was great also and returned to Vigo. We spent the night before our flight out at the Hotel Avion near the airport. Nice small inn with a great restaurant and cafeteria. Also had a shuttle to the airport included in the cost.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

I walked through Vigo on the Portuguese Coastal route two weeks ago. The path we took into the city does not trace the waterfront, it follows along a riverside park for a good way, pleasant and popular with the locals. Like any other camino in any city, it gets into industrial and concrete cityscapes, but nothing awful or exceptional.

Vigo´s got a lot of youthful energy, and its empanada is outstanding.

 

[turtles06]

I walked through Vigo on the Portuguese Coastal route two weeks ago. The path we took into the city does not trace the waterfront, it follows along a riverside park for a good way, pleasant and popular with the locals. Like any other camino in any city, it gets into industrial and concrete cityscapes, but nothing awful or exceptional.

Vigo´s got a lot of youthful energy, and its empanada is outstanding.

Rebekah: is this "path" into the city following the park marked at all so one is able to know that it is El Camino? Any other information you can provide to identify exactly where this goes through the city, since it doesn't trace the waterfront?

Thanks for your help, and thanks to others above who also replied to my initial question.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Turtle,
You can find the answers to this one in the "Camino Portuguese Coastal" section of this site. It has links to maps, routes, markings, etc. The ubiquitous Johnnie Walker also has posted some very helpful trail notes.

There are two paths through Vigo from the south, one leads to the albergue on the eastern side of town, the other follows through the heart of the city and right out the other side.
The riverside path we followed was marked with blue arrows. We were walking SOUTH, (backwards) and we can only walk one path at a time, so I cannot tell you how it all connects up!
If there are two ways to choose from, I will always take the Hard Way.
Reb.